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Fast Facts about Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas Other Name of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: Douglas Shire Council Wharf and Storage Shed Place ID of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: 600466 Status of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: Permanent Entry Address of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: 6 Dixie Street Town/Suburb of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: Port Douglas LGA of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: Douglas Shire Council Theme at Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: Moving goods and people Theme, supplying urban services (power, transport, fire prevention, roads, water, light and sewerage) Significance of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas: The building is significant for its historical association with the development of Port Douglas as a shipping terminal. History of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas was erected in 1904 for the Douglas Shire Council. The extensions to the storage shed were made in the 1920s. Earlier, all general cargo handling was carried out at the private wharfing facilities. The wharf was built to serve the handling of general cargo in preference to at least one other previous proposal for a jetty at Macrossan Street. In 1904, Douglas Shire Council obtained a loan from the Queensland Government to build a new wharf for the berthing of ships at a more convenient site in the harbor. The wharf was last used for sugar shipment on 1 April 1958. Subsequently the wharf was leased for private enterprise from 1963 until January 1975. The space between the original stone-pitched jetty and the storage building has been reclaimed in recent years, and the 1904 timber-piled and timber framed jetty removed. Features of Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas The wharf is at the entrance to Dickson's Inlet approximately opposite the western end of Warner Street. The other features of the Shipwreck Museum in Port Douglas include: - The storage shed roof trusses are constructed from 300x 150 mm [12� x 6�] and 200 x 150 mm [8� x 6�] sections, mainly Oregon, and the storage shed was planked internally to facilitate the stacking of bagged sugar.
- A simple gable roofed form building, the former wharf storage building is built out over the water on timber piles braced by diagonal timbers.
- The new corrugated steel roof is exposed internally and supported on burling spanning between major trusses of mainly Oregon members. Timber planes fixed with dog spikes form the floor.
- The building is an important element in the townscape of Port Douglas, being most visible from the sea and surrounding hills.
- It contains significant marine wreck artifacts which form part of Ben Cropp's collection.
An earlier stone pitched jetty is still in evidence at the side of the new earth filled access to the building.
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